Patches
by KeyofAce
Summary: "This proves they were alive. To me at least." - Levi


Hello all, Ace here with a story from a new series this time. I really am obsessed with Shingeki no Kyojin and I thought the scene from the anime with Levi and that survey corps soldier about the patches on the capes was really interesting. This story was born from that scene.

As always, please rate and review as I get a little giddy when I see a new review!

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"Captain Levi!" Petra Ral called through the door, a bowl of hot soup in her hands.

Knock knock.

No answer.

"Captain Levi!"

Knock knock knock.

Still no answer.

"CAPTAIN LEVI!"

Knock knock knock knock!

"What?!" a very gaunt and haggard Levi answered roughly, the door swinging open.

"I… um… brought you some soup captain…" Petra mumbled, "I thought maybe it might help your cold."

Levi's harsh expression softened, if only for a second.

"I am fine Petra, thank you for the soup, it is however unnecessary. This pesky cold will be gone by tomorrow and then I shall return to killing the titans. Return to your post." And the door closed.

Then there was a knock. Did this newbie not understand what "return to your post" means? Sure she was a part of his squad and her titan killing ability was spectacular, but to so brazenly go to his living space and knock rudely on a superiors door… incomprehensible to the man. A sharp pain shot through the Captain's head, most likely from too much thinking. He could dodge titans and slash their necks till his heart's content but how was he meant to fight something that he couldn't see? Something that was inside his head? He pulled his cloak tighter around him to keep warm and opened the door once again; he had made her wait after all. She stood a metre back, hand over her heart in a perfect salute and the bowl of soup carefully placed on the wall of his porch.

"Why are you still here Petra? I told you to return to your post-"

"Respectfully sir, I am off duty as are you," She caught him off guard with that one; he would give her that, "I also understand that you can punish me when we are on duty but I simply wish to help your recovery."

He considered her carefully, his gaunter than usual eyes unreadable. Levi looked down to the ground, shook his head (a move he regretted instantly, the headache like a raging bull) and stepped back, opening the door wider to let her in. Petra beamed and stepped through the door, immediately hit by a wave of heat and dark. It was stifling in the small house, two fires going and not a single opening in the home. Levi took the soup from her hands and walked to the kitchen head held high in an effort to maintain some level of his usual demeanour and dignity. He hated sickness. He had only been sick once before in his life and that was when he was a boy many years ago. The war hero looked back at Petra who was standing uncomfortably, noticing something he was none too happy about.

"Take off your shoes, Petra." Sick or not, cleanliness was a priority.

"My deepest apologies captain." The young soldier spluttered and made a quick exit to the door, swiftly removing her boots and placing them to the side of the captain's door. Levi looked down at the almost indistinguishable footprints with disgust, and grabbing one of the many conveniently located brooms, began to sweep away the impurities. Petra walked back in timidly, shedding her cloak and hanging it on a peg on the wall. Levi had company rarely but he was not one to treat them rudely in his own home, unless they deserved it of course. Focusing on the sweeping, Levi had no way of knowing a fit of giddiness and exhaustion was about to befall him. Feeling sick to his very bones, he couldn't stop himself from almost stumbling, barely grasping on to the wall for support (finger marks, disgusting.)

"Captain!"

Petra rushed toward the captain, and taking the broom from his hands, led him to the couch of the cottage where she lay him down and, grabbing her cloak, covered him as best as she could. Levi said nothing as this happened; protesting he knew would be pointless. Instead the captain contented himself to trying to sleep and ignore the headache. Petra was no fool; she being a normal person unlike her new captain was accustomed to getting sick, and immediately went to find a blanket and a wash cloth. Wrapping the now asleep captain tightly in the soldier blanket she found in his room, the young soldier needed only to find a hand towel or wash cloth. Petra was ecstatic, she had always had a little fan girl crush on humanity's strongest warrior and this situation was right out of some trashy romance novel or a bad fan fiction.

Shaking the ideas out of her head, Petra wandered through the captain's house. It was small, that was true, but rather spacious inside with two bedrooms, a bathroom, a kitchen and a living room. A nice place to have a family she thought, maybe her, Levi and two kids. Petra almost squealed but held her composure. She barely even knew this man and she had only been under his command for a few days. It was somewhat presumptuous of her to show up uninvited, she knew that much but it was only to help speed up her captains recovery, how could that be a bad thing? Focusing her attention to the task at hand, she found a washcloth in the captain's bathroom and quickly ran it under some cold water. Squeezing it until it was only semi-damp; she folded it and placed it over Levi's forehead. His sleeping face seemed to un-tense at the application of the cool cloth and that was a good sign.

Petra just stood there, watching Levi for a few moments. For an instant he looked weak, strange as that sounded and it was almost illusion shattering. Petra placed her hand against his forehead. He didn't feel any less sick but he was sound asleep so at least he wasn't in pain. Deciding to make herself useful, if not at the very least nosey, Petra quietly moved into the kitchen and put the water on to boil, and after rummaging through Levi's cupboards, found exactly what she was looking for; lemon tea. Carefully making the tea, she put it on the table next to her captain and left the living room, deciding to go for a short wander if only to kill some time and not at all for the purpose of finding out more about Levi.

After about ten minutes of snooping, Petra did discover something about her captain. He was absolutely boring. He didn't have a book in site, no games, not even a brightly coloured piece of cloth on his clothes or furniture. He was a military man to his very core and it showed in his dwelling. His clothes were brown or forest green, his sheets were brown or forest green and his furniture was brown or forest green. God she was bored. She had even reheated the soup she made for him and cleaned up the mess. All that she could do was investigate the locked door in the back. She assumed it had valuables or even secret stuff that would embarrass her captain, but how could she know unless she looked.

There was just one problem in her endeavour, she didn't have the key. Levi's house was so clean that everything was in its proper place but for the life of her, Petra could not find a damn key box or key holder. Petra was not a ditsy blond, as her cute girl demeanour might imply, rather she was incredibly sharp and clever; clever enough to realise that her captain must have had the key on his person. Slinking over to the couch where the captain lay, she carefully lifted the blanket off of him and slipped her hand into his jacket pocket. Their intimacy made the girl blush but she pushed on, patting Levi down until she felt the familiar shape of a key in his pants. Pushing the key out was no easy task but Petra managed to slide it into her palm and, quiet as a cat was on her way to the locked back door.  
Pushing the key into the lock and turning, Petra was instantly caught off guard by what she saw. It was a room with multiple pristine shelves. On each of these shelves was a wooden box framed with silver trims and the survey corps emblem on top. Each of these boxes had a number carved into it, going from one to fifty. Looking inside box labeled _43rd Expedition_, she saw a number of survey corps jacket patches. The contents of the box were a mix of blue, white, red and brown neatly placed on top of each other. The blue and white were the wings of freedom, the emblem of the survey corps, and the brown was the frayed edges of the patches. The red was obvious, it was blood; the blood of probably a hundred dead survey corps soldiers. She picked one of the patches up and turned it over. She was surprised to see Levi's painfully neat scrawl on the back of the patch.

_"Seifer Strauss, KIA, 43rd Expedition."_

She opened box 46 and picked up another.

_"Giselle Gewelle, KIA, 46th Expedition."_

Just what was this? Petra could not help but open another box and pick up a third patch.

_"Zell Dincht, KIA, 49th Expedition.'_

Petra reached for another but felt a steaming hot hand grab her wrist. Oh she was in trouble now.

"Petra, what the hell are you doing?"

Levi was furious. She barely knew him but she could gather that much.

"My apologies sir…" she racked her brains for something to say, anything to get her out of trouble, "what are these?"

Good one idiot, she thought. Levi studied her for a second and, feeling somewhat better, decided he may as well talk.

"These are the patches on the jackets of men and women who have fallen while under my command in the survey corps." Petra's amber eyes shot open, she had no idea that her captain would do such a thing.

"If you don't mind me asking captain, why would you keep the patch?" Petra inquired. Levi took it from her hand and stared into the patch, turning it over and mouthing the name.

"This proves that they were alive. To me at least."

Petra was about to speak but thought better of it when she saw Levi gently place the patch down and pick up another, again mouthing the names on the fabric. He did this again and again, like a man crazed. It wasn't that he wouldn't stop, he simply couldn't. Petra observed her captain with a secret awe, she had no idea he was so deep, so complex. Levi had forgotten she was even there in the first place. Petra thought that it was best to leave her captain in his peaceful moment, glad that he looked less sick.

It was dark now, and Levi moved from patch to patch in his usual manner, alone as he liked. He flipped through the patches, taking care to read and memorise the names. There were new names that he never would have thought to end up in one of his boxes, after all when you finish your first mission your survival rate is supposed to skyrocket. Moving through patch to patch, he stopped.

_"Petra Ral, KIA, 57th Expedition."_

There were no tears, and he wouldn't admit it aloud, nor would he even utter it to himself in his most private moments, but he missed her.


End file.
